


Teenage Kicks: Or Why Padma Patil Went on One Disastrous Date with Ron Weasley

by lily_pearl (lilyandjoey), lilyandjoey



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/F, First Crush, Missing Scene, Unrequited Crush, Yule Ball
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-12-13
Updated: 2009-12-13
Packaged: 2017-10-04 09:49:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilyandjoey/pseuds/lily_pearl, https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilyandjoey/pseuds/lilyandjoey
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Padma Patil has never understood her sisters obsession with teenage boys …</p>
            </blockquote>





	Teenage Kicks: Or Why Padma Patil Went on One Disastrous Date with Ron Weasley

**Author's Note:**

> Originally written for [](http://community.livejournal.com/lgbtfest/profile)[**lgbtfest**](http://community.livejournal.com/lgbtfest/) (prompt 705. Harry Potter, any characters, In _Goblet of Fire_, a previously closeted character asks a same-sex classmate to the Ball.), but not posted due to internet crapness. I always wondered why two of the prettiest girls in Harry's year were mysteriously available for him and Ron to date as last resorts. Here's my version …

Padma Patil took her time tidying up her section of the workbench in Greenhouse Three. She knew that she was stalling for time, of course, but she hoped her classmates would just think her meticulous. She was known for being thorough after all. Unfortunately, Padma soon ran out of things to clean and put away and was forced to pack her bag and head back to the castle. She was so lost in thought that she nearly walked into Hannah Abbott who was running towards the greenhouse. Unfortunately, while Padma had stopped on seeing the other girl, Hannah was going full tilt and couldn't stop. She slammed into Padma and they both dropped to the floor with a thud.

The force of it knocked the wind out of Padma, who found herself in a tangle of limbs, mostly under Hannah and rather out of breath. Hannah pulled herself up as fast as she could. She scrambled to get up and then held out a hand to a dazed and bewildered Padma.

"I'm so sorry!" Hannah gasped, "I should have been paying more attention, it's just I was late and ... oh I've made such a mess!"

Hannah stopped and looked at the floor. Padma was startled to see that the other girl was blushing furiously. She looked down at herself and found that her clothes were covered in mud. Hannah had landed on top and was therefore relatively unscathed.

"I keep a change of clothes in the greenhouse," Hannah offered, "Filch goes mad if I track mud through the castle."

"Um, yeah," Padma said eloquently, "that would be good."

She dutifully followed Hannah back into the greenhouse.

"Thanks," she added as an afterthought.

"Oh, no. It's my fault you got covered in mud," Hannah assured Padma as she led her through the greenhouse.

Hannah walked briskly through the greenhouse, expertly sidestepping the friskier specimens, towards a row of cupboards. She crouched in front of one of them and pulled out a simple cloth bag. She handed it to Padma.

"They might be a little big for you. You're thinner than me, I think," Hannah said awkwardly.

Padma opened the bag and pulled out a pair of old jeans and a faded pink T-shirt. She put them on top of the low cupboard and removed her mud covered robes, then her shoes and her tights (which now had a massive ladder in them). She crumpled the tights in disgust and dropped them on the floor. Next went the tie, jumper and shirt. Padma pulled the T-shirt over her head and wriggled into it. She undid her skirt and let it fall to the floor. When she stepped out of it, she found herself face to face with a blushing Hannah.

"You have leaves in your hair," Hannah said in a small voice.

"Oh," Padma said, her hand flying up to the side of her head, "where?"

Hannah took a small step forward and reached up gently. Padma felt her heart rate quicken as Hannah slowly removed the leaves from her hair. Hannah's breathing was noticeably heavier and they were mere inches apart. Padma's mind raced, wondering what anyone who walked in would make of this. Her in just a T-shirt and knickers in the early afternoon with Hannah so close. Hannah's hand brushed the side of Padma's face as she pulled her hand back and Padma felt her skin tingle.

The moment was over almost as soon as it had begun and Hannah was back to blushing and babbling. Padma pulled on Hannah's old jeans and slipped her bare feet back into her school shoes. She bundled her muddy school things into Hannah's cloth bag and slung it over her shoulder. It was at that point that Padma remembered that she had left her satchel outside in the mud.

"I'll get these back to you tomorrow," Padma said.

"That's fine," Hannah replied, "I'm really sorry about ... that."

Padma smiled and head back out of the greenhouse, only just remembering to dodge the Venomous Tentacula on the way.

~~~~~~~

Over the next few days, Padma couldn't get the incident in the greenhouse out of her mind. She re-played it over and over again - Hannah's constant blushing, the tension in the air, the surreal feeling that _something_ was about to happen. She found herself daydreaming in class, running through the scene in her mind. Only this time she closed the distance between herself and Hannah and kissed the other girl. Padma snapped back to reality and hastily started taking notes, hoping that no one had noticed her lapse in concentration. From that point on, Padma sat next to Hannah in class at every available opportunity. She leaned close to ask questions and let her leg gently brush against Hannah's under the table. She revelled in her new-found ability to make the other girl blush.

It was strange to suddenly be provided with an insight into the workings of her twin's mind. Padma had always thought Parvati frivolous for toying with boys like this, but she had to admit that the sense of power was exhilarating. At least, it was to begin with. After a week or so, Padma started to get bored and frustrated. She found herself observing her sister and Lavender flirting with various boys (for research purposes, naturally) and deciding what to try out on Hannah.

After a month of increasingly less subtle (and mostly successful) attempts to make Hannah blush, Padma's prayers were answered. An announcement went up stating that there was to be a Yule Ball. There was absolute chaos: dance lessons; shopping for formal wear; students asking out other students left, right and centre; gossip about who was going with whom. This was Padma's opportunity to bring the situation to a head.

~~~~~~~

It took Padma nearly a week to get Hannah alone. She had already turned down four over-eager boys and was desperately hoping that Hannah hadn't already got a date for the Ball.

"Hannah!" Padma called when she spotted Hannah heading for the lake. She jogged to catch up.

Hannah turned at the sound of her name. She was already blushing when Padma got to her. Padma decided to press the advantage and stand a little too close. She was pleased when Hannah didn't back away. Padma decided to get straight to the point.

"Will you go to the Ball with me?" she asked confidently.

The look of shock on Hannah's face was not the reaction Padma had been anticipating. Surely the _weeks_ of flirting had been a clue?

"I - I'm going with Ernie," Hannah stammered, looking at the floor.

Having decided that she had nothing left to lose, Padma tilted Hannah's chin up and kissed her.

"You should have waited for me," she said sadly before running back to the castle.

~~~~~~~

After three days of feeling sorry for herself, Padma had a visit from Parvati who was beside herself with glee. This put Padma in an even worse mood.

"Guess who I'm going to the Ball with?" Parvati crowed.

"The giant squid," Padma said sullenly.

"Harry Potter!" Parvati squealed, completely ignoring her twin's dour mood, "Only, I promised I'd get Ron Weasley a date, and as you aren't going with anyone ..."

"What? No!" Padma cried in outrage.

Parvati managed to reign in her exuberance a little and sat down next to Padma, pulling her into a one-sided hug.

"But, Padi, you've turned down everyone who's asked," Parvati said softly, "who are you waiting for?"

Padma furiously blinked back the tears, but it was to no avail. Soon she was crying in earnest. Parvati held her tighter.

"Going with someone else," she managed between sobs.

Parvati stroked her sister's hair and wiped away her tears.

"Then go with Ron and show the idiot what he's missing, yeah?" Parvati said with a wry smile.

Padma nodded. 


End file.
